Personalcomputer game are usually distributed using standard storage units for personalcomputers, such as compact discs and most recently, DVDs.

Although computers have become commonplace only in recent times, since they were prohibitively expensive and bulky until the development of the microprocessor, they have been used for computer gaming since at least the 1960s.

Personalcomputers have at times been superior to their equivalent video game consoles, and thus capable of playing more graphically sophisticated games and prompting the rise of entire genres such as the first person shooter.

A personalcomputer or PC is generally a microcomputer intended to be used by one person at a time, and suitable for general purpose tasks such as word processing, programming, multimedia editing or game play, usually used to run purchased or other software not written by the user.

Unlike minicomputers, a personalcomputer is often owned by the person using it, indicating a low cost of purchase and simplicity of operation.

Though many personalcomputers are IBM PC compatible using either Microsoft Windows or open-source forms of UNIX such as Linux, a number of other personalcomputer types are still popular.

Designed to be used by a single person at a time, a PC is generally smaller, less expensive, and easier to use than supercomputers, mainframecomputers, and computer workstations, which usually have more computational power than a PC.

In the mid-1940s, early computers were the size of houses and as expensive as battleships, but they had none of the computational power or ease of use that are common in modern PCs.

The miniaturization of electronic circuitry and the invention of integrated circuits and microprocessors enabled computer makers to combine the essential elements of a computer onto tiny silicon computer chips, thereby increasing computer performance and decreasing cost.

For example, the IBM 610 Auto-Point Computer (1957) was described as being "IBM's first personalcomputer" on the premise that it was intended for use by a single operator, but this machine was not based on the stored program concept and it cost $55,000!

In 1981, IBM launched their first PC for $1,365, which, if nothing else, sent a very powerful signal to the world that personalcomputers were here to stay.

The advent of the general-purpose microprocessor heralded a new era in computing -- microcomputer systems small enough to fit on a desk could be endowed with more processing power than monsters weighing tens of tons only a decade before.

Prior to the PC, computers were designed for (and only affordable by) companies who attached terminals for multiple users to a single large computer whose resources were shared among all users.

The advent of the era of the personalcomputer was acknowledged by Time magazine in 1982, when they broke with tradition by choosing the PC as their "Man of the Year." By the late 1980s, technology advances made it feasible to build a small computer that an individual could own and use.

The distinction is both technical and cultural and harkens back to the early years of personalcomputers, when IBM and Apple were the two major competitors.

Personal Computer History - Invention of the Personal Computer(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)

PersonalComputers, microcomputers were made possible by two technical innovations in the field of microelectronics: the integrated circuit, or IC, which was developed in 1959; and the microprocessor, which first appeared in 1971.

The IC permitted the miniaturization of computer-memory circuits, and the microprocessor reduced the size of a computer'sCPU to the size of a single silicon chip.

This site is intended to provide a broad history of Apple Computer, Inc., from the invention of the Apple I in 1976 to the troubled times of the past few years to the current revival.

Although IBM's launch of the PersonalComputer (IBM 5150) in 1981 set the industry standard for personalcomputing, IBM had introduced a variety of small computers for individual users several years before that.

One of the earliest IBM attempts to move computing into the hands of single users was the "SCAMP" project in 1973.

An immediate success, the IBM PC quickly becomes the industry standard, and was one of the reasons Time magazine chose the "personalcomputer" as its 1982 Man of the Year.

Select firms are authorized as dealers to sell selected IBM products as contracts are signed with Sears, Roebuck and Co., Inc., and Computerland to sell IBMPersonalComputers; and sales channels are expanded to include manufacturers who integrate IBM assemblies and products into specialized systems.

IBMcomputers and software play key role in successful first orbital flight of the Space Shuttle.

PC users looking for an authoritative, comprehensive resource on virtually every aspect of their computer will find what they need in PersonalComputer Secrets, written by Bob O'Donnell and published by computer publishing powerhouse IDG Books.

PersonalComputer Secrets, which has been the #1-selling computer book at Amazon.com, covers all the major topics that most PC users face including:

Finally, to view some of the example files available here on the Web in PDF format, you may need to download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.

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